Power over Ethernet (PoE) technology facilitates provision of electrical power to one or more devices connected to a network, such as cameras and other audiovisual equipment, wireless access points, etc. The power sourcing equipment (PSE) provides power supply connection to one end of an Ethernet communication cable and the power-consuming or “powered” device (PD) is connected to the second end. PoE systems can also accommodate different load requirements. The supply and control of applied power in PoE systems is provided at the source end, commonly in an endspan Ethernet switch or an intervening (midspan) device, where the power sourcing equipment queries the powered device or devices and ensures that the load does not draw more power than is allowed. In certain situations, it is desirable to provide redundant PoE cables and associated power sourcing equipment for a given load to achieve power channel redundancy with no power interruption during any transition. The basic architecture uses two or more PoE inputs, each fed by a PSE port. Each input must draw enough current on its respective power feed to ensure the PSE power is maintained. One configuration uses a PD interface for each PoE input and a single shared DC-DC converter to provide continuous output power without interruption while PoE inputs are connected in any sequence and over any time interval. Redundant designs must therefore accommodate situations in which a PoE input is connected while another PoE input is already providing power to the load without disruption of output power. Conventional PoE operating procedures for powered device controllers are thus largely incompatible with desired redundant system operation in situations where one PSE port is providing power to a shared DC-DC converter and another PoE port is connected to a PSE.